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Updated: May 22, 2026

The Generation of Higher-order Laguerre-Gauss Optical Beams for High-precision Interferometry
Published on: August 12, 2013
Observation of the Gouy phase anomaly in astigmatic beams
Jannick P Rolland1, Kevin P Thompson, Kye-Sung Lee
1The Institute of Optics, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York 14627, USA. rolland@optics.rochester.edu
Abstract:
The Gouy phase anomaly, well established for stigmatic beams, is validated here for astigmatic beams. We simulate the predicted Gouy phase anomaly near astigmatic foci using a beam propagation algorithm integrated within lens design software. We then compare computational results with experimental data acquired using a modified Mertz-Sagnac interferometer. Both in simulation and in experiment, results show that a π/2-phase change occurs as the beam passes through each of the astigmatic foci, experimentally validating results derived in a recent paper by Visser and Wolf [Opt. Commun. 283, 3371-3375 (2010)].
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